Minutes later, Anub returned, her face glowing. It was clear she was happy with her price. Instantly, she found my eyes.
The other girls watched her curiously especially at the smile on her face.
“I got fifteen thousand more than I thought I would.”
My eyes popped open. She fetched ?35,000. Up till that moment, a part of me had believed it all to be a scam. “They’re actually going to pay the money into your account?”
“First thing tomorrow morning. After …” Her smile faltered a bit. “… After tonight.”
“Was it nerve-wracking?” I asked.
“A bit,” she reiterated.
I leaned in. “Did you see any of their faces?”
“No, they’re all hidden behind mirrors. When they make a bid, the button underneath their mirror flashes.”
The next girl’s name was called.
“Good luck,” Anub said, and skipped off with one of the employees of the club.
I felt my stomach churn, like I had to rush to the toilet maybe. I placed my hand on my belly and took deep breaths. I didn’t need to go to the toilet. I hadn’t eaten since lunch. I told myself everything would be okay. I could hear the auctioneer talking up the price, but I had stopped listening. Only when one of the girls in front of me gasped and another squealed that my attention was brought back to the room.
“Oh, my God. She got ?92,000!” the girl in front informed me.
My heart stopped. “What? What was her reserve price?”
“40,000,” she replied. “Both her and her friend made the same reserve amount.”
I turned to them, both girls of Oriental heritage. They were attractive, but in my opinion, not as much as Anub. Perhaps their buyer had a taste for Chinese beauties. Had I done myself a disservice by setting my reserve price so low that the men will think I was not worth much either?
At the worry in my gaze, the girl asked, “Why, how much did you set?”
“15,000,” I responded.
She frowned at me. “Why so low?”
“To be honest I kinda didn’t expect anyone to pay so much for so little. I’ve been waiting for the other shoe to drop. I can’t even believe that someone actually got ?90,000.”
“Maybe you can quickly change your reserve price. Speak to one of the staff. After all, it’s not your turn for some time yet.”
“No need. The woman before said it would be impossible once the show started.” I sighed. “Even if I can command ?15,000 it would be a great help.”
She looked genuinely amused. “What do you mean if you can command that much? Have you looked at yourself in the mirror?”
The third girl returned to the room then, so we turned, expecting to see nothing but smiles, but instead, she was in tears and trembling violently.
The rest of the room quickly went over to console her.
I tried my best to listen in on her lament but she was speaking in Chinese.
“What happened?” the black girl asked.
Her friend looked up at us, mournfully. “No one wanted to meet her reserve price.”
A gasp of dismay went around the room. After the rush of thinking, we could make up to 90,000 ? all of us who had not yet gone on stage ? realized that we could actually leave with nothing.
“80,000 was kind of a stretch though …” the girl next to me said in a lowered voice.
“But her friend made it and got twelve thousand more,” I said.
“I guess, it’s all a matter of luck. Regardless, ?80,000 is still a stretch. Plus, anyone who has that much money for a night must not be right in the head.”
“Freya?”
My throat dried up and my vision actually blurred.
“Freya?” The assistant called looking around. “Where the bloody hell are you? You’re next.”
With the potential of rejection ? and now, I had to show my naked body to a roomful of strangers, no doubt kinky, decrepit bastards ? I wanted to disappear into nothing, but I couldn’t move.
“Freya, you’re on. Can you hurry up please?”
I walked out of the hallway and onto the stage.
When I arrived, I found a white star in the center of the small black stage. The many mirrors glinted in the gloom. To give myself some time, I pretended to be in search of the exact middle of the star. Then I disrobed and pulled down my thong. The aristocratic woman’s warning came to mind, and I knew I should undress it in a seductive way to make sure I reached my reserve price, but I couldn’t get my body to work properly. It was as though my entire body had frozen solid and all my movements were awkward and heavy.
“Turn to the side,” the voice instructed.
I turned.
“Face the back.”
I faced the back.
“Lie on the bench, please.”
My heart was racing when I lay down on the cold wood that seemed more like an altar than a table.
“Legs,” the auctioneer commanded.
I closed my eyes tightly and opened my legs. Part of me felt as if I was dreaming. This couldn’t be real. I was not lying on a table while strange men looked between my legs.
“Stand up.”
I stood.
“The auction will begin now.”
My head remained down even as the auction started, and I couldn’t lift it up. It felt as heavy as lead so I gave up, shut my eyes, and managed to stop myself from running off the stage.